Introduction
Before getting into the meaning of Proverbs 13:3, here’s different Bible translations:
King James Version
He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction.
American Standard Version
He that guardeth his mouth keepeth his life; [But] he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction.
World English Bible version
He who guards his mouth guards his soul. One who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.
Proverbs 13:3 Meaning & Commentary
Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin. Proverbs 13:3 (ESV)
The mouth is an incredibly powerful organ. With our mouths, we speak words that have the potential to either bring life or death to our lives. We can speak words that are God-breathed and bring life, or words which are ignited by hell and can bring destruction.
The Bible says in Proverbs 13:3 that guarding our mouths can preserve our life. The truth is that there is a time to remain silent and say nothing. When we are not in tune with God in our lives, we need to be careful to release words over our lives. We know that life and death are in the power of our words, or what we speak: Proverbs 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.
The time to refrain from speaking and instead “guard our mouth” is when we are overcome by negative emotions. Perhaps we have had a failure in life, lost our job, had failed relationship, or something like this – in frustration; we may say things like, “This always happens to me.” When we do that, we are essentially speaking words of death over our lives and bringing that into reality. Then, we will start to see that always happen to us because we have spoken it into existence.
Another time to guard our mouths is when speaking to other people. Not only can we speak death over other people, but we can potentially talk ourselves into, or out of trouble. Think of most physical altercations – what people say can either diffuse a situation or escalate it. So, controlling what we say – or don’t say can even be a matter of life or death! Thus, the words we speak can either bring us to ruin or be our greatest ally!
Application
How can we apply Proverbs 13:3 to our lives?
Firstly, we need to control what we say and how we say it. However, more importantly – we need to know when to remain silent. Sometimes silence is golden, and the best time to practice silence is when we feel negative emotions.
The truth is that our hearts and mouths are connected. We could say that the mouth is an overflow or outward expression of what is happening inside us: Matthew 12:34 You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. However, we do not have to be evil to speak evil words. Sometimes, we can speak evil words in moments of weakness.
Even Jesus had to be very conscious about what he said: John 12:27 “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. When Jesus was about to go to the cross, his soul was greatly troubled. However, his response was, “what shall I say.” The truth is that we cannot always control what we are feeling, but we always have control over what we say!
Likewise, when we are engaging with another person who is making us angry, frustrated, or annoyed, we should do our best to get away from that person’s presence, but if we cannot – we need to watch our mouths carefully. If we have nothing good to say, it is better to keep quiet! These are the times when opening our mouths can lead to “ruin.” We could ruin a relationship, our reputation, or even our future by opening our mouths and speaking words that we should not!
We can also pray daily to God and ask for His Wisdom and discernment so we can know how to handle the various situations we find ourselves in. It is also of utmost importance to spend time with God so that we can grow in His Character and, in doing so, exercise greater levels of self-control!
Prayer
Mighty God, thank you for Your Holy Spirit, who empowers me and helps me to live a Christ-like life. I ask for Wisdom and Discernment so that I may know how to handle difficult situations I find myself in correctly.
Help me guard my mouth where necessary so that I can protect what you have entrusted to me and that no ruin may come to my life. I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen!
